But Coach Doc Rivers gives no definitive word on whether the guard, who missed 21 games after suffering a broken wrist, will play against the Lakers on Friday night.

J.J. Redick eased his way onto the Clippers' court Thursday wearing his practice gear, his right hand wrapped lightly in a black brace.

Redick took part in some shooting drills with teammates, another strong indication that the Clippers' starting shooting guard would be available to play Friday night when they host the Lakers at Staples Center.

He has been out for almost seven weeks recovering from a broken right wrist and torn ligaments on the side of his right wrist.

Redick, who declined to speak with reporters before practice, has sat out the last 21 games.

"He has been cleared and he looked good the other day," Rivers said. "So if it that's true, he's probably going to play."

Redick averaged 15.8 points on 46% shooting, 35.9% from three-point range, in the first 17 games.

Rivers acknowledged that he is somewhat concerned about Redick's stamina and wondered how Redick will operate without point guard Chris Paul, who will be out up to six weeks with a separated right shoulder.

"What will be interesting is how it works without Chris, because J.J.'s movement is still the point guard seeing the movement and giving him the ball in the right spot," Rivers said. "So I don't know how that will work."

Clippers' expectations

Blake Griffin is much more concerned about how the Clippers are playing than how the Lakers, with the third-worst record in the West, are struggling.

"I've said this from day one. I could care less about what's going on over there," Griffin said. "To me, it's about us. It's about what we're doing here. The most satisfying thing is to be a part of this changing culture.

"In this environment, we expect to come in and we expect to win. We expect to make the playoffs. We expect to do all these things. That's the most satisfying thing to me."

Etc.

Paul dropped to third in the Western Conference All-Star balloting for backcourt players with 651,073 votes when the NBA announced its third-round results Thursday.

He was overtaken by Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, who has 677,372 votes. The Lakers' Kobe Bryant, who has played six games this season, leads all guards in the West with 844, 538 votes.

Griffin was third in the balloting with 500,964 votes for Western Conference frontcourt players.

Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant leads Western Conference frontcourt players with 1,054,209 votes and Houston's Dwight Howard is second with 509,116.